Ian strengthened into a Category 4 hurricane while moving toward Florida, making landfall in the state on Wednesday afternoon. Ian is expected to bring life-threatening storm surges between 12 to 18 feet along the coastal Fort Myers area, from Englewood to Bonita Beach; catastrophic winds from 150 to 190 mph in southwest Florida; and widespread, flooding rain of 12 to 14 inches in central and northeastern Florida. International Medical Corps is currently on the group ready to respond.
Ian strengthened into a Category 4 hurricane, making landfall in Florida on September 28th. Ian is expected to bring life-threatening storm surges between 12 to 18 feet along the coastal Fort Myers area, from Englewood to Bonita Beach; catastrophic winds from 150 to 190 mph in southwest Florida; and widespread, flooding rain of 12 to 14 inches in central and northeastern Florida. Damaged infrastructure, displaced residents, and injury will all stress local health systems.
International Medical Corps' Emergency Response Team is on the ground monitoring the situation and coordinating closely with the Florida Department of Health. Our teams stand ready to assist with response and recovery efforts, and have prepositioned a mobile medical unit (MMU), a mobile command center and critical relief supplies, including tarps, generators, solar lamps, hygiene kits and drinking water. We also activated our volunteer roster and stand ready to deploy medical teams as needed.
International Medical Corps has provided emergency health services in Florida since 2017, after Hurricane Irma struck the southern portion of the state. Working directly with the Florida Department of Health, International Medical Corps has worked to improve resiliency through training and technical assistance. As we do in all of our disaster responses globally, International Medical Corps will incorporate long-term recovery and resiliency into its Hurricane Ian response.
